2 sisters of Iowa state rep found dead in Pa. home

PITTSBURGH — Two sisters of an Iowa state representative have been found dead of apparent gunshot wounds in the Pittsburgh home they shared, and police are investigating the case as a double homicide.

The bodies of 44-year-old Susan Wolfe and 38-year-old Sarah Wolfe were found Friday afternoon in their basement after they didn’t show up for work, authorities said. Police found Sarah Wolfe’s car around 1:15 a.m. Saturday parked nearly a mile away.

Sarah Wolfe was a psychiatrist for Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic, and Susan Wolfe was a teacher’s aide at Hillel Academy in Pittsburgh’s Squirrel Hill neighborhood.

Pittsburgh police Lt. Daniel Herrmann said they don’t have a motive for the killings, and there were no signs of forced entry. Family members, most of whom live in Iowa, said they’re still trying to figure out what happened.

A sister, Mary Wolfe, is an Iowa Democratic state representative who lives in Clinton. Her website says she is the oldest of eight children, six girls and two boys.

On her Facebook page Saturday night, Rep. Wolfe thanked friends, neighbors and colleagues for their support.

“We are so grateful,” she wrote. “Heartbroken, but grateful.”

Dr. Claudia M. Roth, CEO of Western Psychiatric, said in a statement that she mourned the loss of both lives and said Sarah “was known as a very compassionate, warm, caring and bright physician who was praised by patients, families, staff and colleagues.”

Sarah Wolfe purchased the home in the East Liberty neighborhood on Dec. 3 for $210,000, Allegheny County records show. Susan Wolfe had recently moved from Iowa to Pittsburgh to live with her sister.

The medical examiner’s office has not released causes of death, but police say it appears the women had been shot.

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